The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1887-05-18
AN INCIDENT OF THE WAR.
How Two Actors Met by Chance.
(From the Chicago NewsJ

tfrOn inc chicago NcWS)
Gus Mortimer, the manager of Louis
James, who is lately from New Orleans,
says that the Southern people are in
tensely disgusted with the recent utter
ances of jeff Davis. Beauregard was
and Is still n great favorite with the
Southerners, and they resent any slight
upon him. Mortimer who was in the
Confederate army and i'll Beauregard's s
command, says that he was the most
popular rebel officer, although he was an
extra strict disciplinarian. During the
first winter of the war Bcauregard COM
manded the armies OF Virginia, and the
weather was intensely cold. The men
were volunteers OF course, and entirely
unused to the hardships of war, and they
fell sick in great numbers, and, what
was worse, became dull and dispirited
Protiting by the example of the first
Napoleon, Bcauregard hit upon the plan
OF establishing theatre III the camp for
the amusement OF the troops. Mortimer
was selected to organize the company
and the work of erecting the theatre was
begun. The man who was entrusted
with the funds necessary to engage the
with the money, and the movement of
VIZ Il SbSlui up ull UllC DluuS
During the war, Mortimer says, the
theatres III the South coined money.
The horrors Of the siege were mitigated
and sometimes added to by dramatic per-
formanccs, and when an army entered a
town the first thing it did was to organ
izc on!pany and play in the theatre
Some of tno armies contained enough
soldicr-actoIS for very fair sized com
many and in SDpnn poene ,,lauo xynco ,o
hearsed ahead, but oftcncr still the COM
pany was non-miitary and belonged to
the theatre or Travelled about seeking to
play in some town occupied by troops.
The prices charged we've 50 cents for
privatcs and 81 for officers and the
houses were universally packed. The
audiences were enthusiastic and general
ly in the very best of humcr SO much so
as to make it rather difficult to play.
Mortimer was paroled, and played oil an
on for year or two with all sorts of
picked up companies half professional,
half amateur, and all sorts of sectional
ism and politics. Once at Corinth he
played "Richard I'LL" in linen duster;
but the audience didn't seem to mind
the discrepancy bit, and insisted on
his coming forward in the tent scene and
singing the "Star Spangled Banner" apd
'ln tho Prison Cell | Sit" On the
night of the second days battle of the
| Wilderness Mortimer was on picket
| duty. He had not eaten a morsel for
over thirty hours, and he was nearly
dead with hunger, and very faint, having
but recently come from the hospital. Ii
had been the wont of the soldiers to sup
ply the place of food with copious chews
OF plug tobacco, and Mortimer's pockets
were full of the weed, but the doctor had
| forbidden him using it. He was stand
ing by tree, faint and despairing, and
in the agony of his situation exclaimed
aloud:
"Id give the biggist plug Of tobacco
in the world for piece of hard tack"
"l'll take you at your word, Johnny
Reb, exclaimed hearty voice, and be-
fore Mortimer could bring his gun to his
shoulder form sprang out Of the dusk
and stalwart zouave stood before him.
"I've been watching you for some
time" continued the Northern man,
"and | thought you saw me and was get.
ting ready to pot me till l heard you
speak" The zouave had unslung his
knapsack and displayed before the fam.
ished rebel what seemed to him O ban.
quet. "And now, young fellow" he
said, "if you'll give me plug of tobacco
you can have all the hard tack your jaws
can crack. Fork over" Such exchanges
we're common, and Mortimer clutched
the food and passed over plug of Vir.
ginia tobacco, which was as eagerly re.
ceivcd by the zouave. They talked O
moment or two, and then, realizing Their
danger, prepared to part. Mortimer in
cidentally told his companion his name
and calling. The other was surprised
and aid he was an actor, too.
! ION are9" asked Mortimer, delight